Question

Larva of jellyfish (Aurelia) is called as
A) Planula
B) Polyp
C) Medusa
D) Blastula

Answer 1

Hint:Jellyfish belongs to Cnidarians which is a large group of mammals. It is found in the ocean water. It is seen in all shapes and sizes. Jellyfish are invertebrates that do not have a backbone.

Complete answer:
Jellyfish has complex life cycle which consists of several stages which includes alternating of generations of medusa and polyps.The phases of lifecycle of Aurelia are:
>The polyp phase when they are attached to the coastal reefs. The asexual reproduction takes place in the polyp stage. Polyp produces ephyra by budding.
>The medusa phase when they are free floating. The medusa is the reproductive stage in which the eggs are fertilised internally which develops into free-swimming larvae called the planula. Sexual reproduction takes place in the medusa phase.
>Planula is a free swimming or crawling larva of Cnidarians. The body of planula is cylindrical or egg shaped which has many cilia which is used for locomotion.
>Blastula- It is the stage in early embryonic development. It is a ball of cells.

Thus the correct answer is (A). Larva of jellyfish (Aurelia) is called Planula.

Note:The common jellyfish can be easily differentiated by the presence of four horseshoe-shaped gonads which is easily visible through its translucent body. The medusa stage of all the species of jellyfish is similar. It cannot be identified without genetic sampling.